Berlin-based artist Elif Saydam makes her U.S. solo debut with List Projects 32 at the MIT List Visual Arts Center, on view through August 31, 2025. The exhibition is hosted in the Bakalar Gallery in Boston and explores themes of urban aesthetics, ornamentation, and social hierarchies through Saydam’s latest works.
Born in Calgary, Canada, in 1985, Saydam studied at Concordia University (Montreal) and the Städelschule (Frankfurt). Now working between Berlin and İzmir, Saydam is known for a multilayered visual language shaped by miniature painting, illuminated manuscripts, pop culture, and queer aesthetics. Their work transforms everyday urban scenes—like gas stations or corner shops—into ornate and politically charged spaces through gold leaf, fantasy elements, and ironic touches.
Photo: Julia Featheringill
Bricks, Sponges, Mirrors: Material as Narrative
In List Projects 32, Saydam presents paintings on unconventional surfaces such as batik-dyed canvases, security mirrors, and sponges. These materials invoke references to daily life while engaging with themes of surveillance, visibility, and class. Nostalgic details like 1980s stickers and plastic trinkets add a layer of humor and critical playfulness to the works.
At the center of the exhibition are four large multi-panel pieces that revolve around a recurring “brick” motif. Here, the brick becomes a symbol of both insulation and solidarity, barrier and permeability. Referencing artists like Martin Wong and Philip Guston, these works are positioned within a broad historical context—from the Stonewall Riots to postcolonial architecture. Ornamentation is not just decorative but reimagined as a language of resistance.
Photo: Julia Featheringill / MIT List Visual Arts Center
Saydam’s practice bridges miniature art, geometry, and queer history while offering a critical reworking of Western painting traditions. One of the works in the show, Beusselstrasse 17 10553 Alt Moabit, embeds photographs of Berlin apartment door handles into concrete. Another piece, THIS TENDER THAT RENT, evolves with each exhibition as spray-painted hearts are added over time, making it a living artwork.
Ornament as Resistance
List Projects 32: Elif Saydam is more than a visual feast—it’s a thought-provoking proposal on ornamentation, queer daily life, and urban resistance.
